Pro-Q Smokers & BBQs
Pro-Q Smokers & BBQs
Beef Cheek Tacos
Beef Cheeks smoked low 'n slow over 8 hours, take minimum effort but the results are divine and melt in the mouth. Add tangy pickled red onions, sliced avocado, a fistful of fresh coriander in a soft corn tortilla, and you've got a tasty Mexican-style taco. Serve with smokey, spicy and sweet roasted Mexican street corn salad (esquites).
If a toothpick slides in and out with almost no resistance, it's commonly referred to as "probing like butter".
OVERVIEW
METHOD
Hot Smoking
Prep Time
30 Mins
Cooking Time
7-8 Hours
Serves
4
Suggested Wood
Hickory
Ability
Beginner
INGREDIENTS
- 2 x 500g Beef Cheeks
- ProQ Beefy BBQ Rub
- 8-10 Corn Tortillas/Wraps
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 250ml Beef Stock
- 1 Red Onion
- 2 Tbsp White Wine Vinegar
- 1 Ripe Avocado
- Fresh Coriander
- 3 Limes
INGREDIENTS
- 2 x 500g Beef Cheeks
- ProQ Beefy BBQ Rub
- 8-10 Corn Tortillas/Wraps
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 250ml Beef Stock
- 1 Red Onion
- 2 Tbsp White Wine Vinegar
- 1 Ripe Avocado
- Fresh Coriander
- 3 Limes
METHOD
Step 1
Trim as much fat as possible, from the outside of the cheeks and remove any silver skin. Cover all sides with ProQ Beefy Rub (you could substitute this with a 40/60 mix of salt & pepper). Finish off with a light sprinkling of smoky paprika and allow to rest at room temperature for 1 hour.
Step 2
Peel, halve and finely slice the red onion. Place in a small dish, add the white wine vinegar, a squeeze of lime juice and sea salt and give it a stir. Set aside in the fridge.
Step 3
Set up your smoker to run low'n slow with water in the pan and charcoal in the basket, add a couple of ProQ Hickory Smoking Wood Chunks to the fire. You’re aiming for a smoker temp of around 225°F/110°C. When your smoker has reached temperature, place the beef cheeks on the grill.
Step 4
Once your beef cheeks internal temperature reaches around 160-170°F/70-75°C, they seem to sit there and not increase temp for quite some time... This is known as "The Stall" - it's nothing to worry about and is completely normal. At this stage, we recommend that you place the beef cheeks in a shallow dish, pour in the beef stock and cover with foil, before placing back on the smoker.
Step 5
When the internal temperature of the beef cheeks reach 185-205°F/85-96°C, check doneness by probing the meat with a toothpick - once it slides in and out with almost no resistance, the cheeks are done and can be put aside to rest for an hour.
Step 6
Using 2 forks, pull the beef cheeks apart in the pan so it mixes with all that fatty goodness. Heat the tortillas, load with pulled beef cheeks, slices of avocado, pickled onions and fresh coriander.
